Olympus C-765

Have used this camera for leisure, including A4 framed landscape prints, and work (engineering). For the price, I can't fault it. I also have a traditional Canon A1 & F1, and digital Fuji S6900 finepix; Minolta Dimage Z2; Nikon Coolpix 8700 and Vivitar ViviCam3825.

SLR's apart - All the digital cameras have their good points, but if I had to go for just one all rounder, then I'd plump for the C-765. With a 1GB card, and a minimum of 2 spare batteries. It is compact enough to take anywhere (in a largish pocket), and with Olympus optics and a 10x optical zoom, it gives enough flexibility to capture virtually anything in good quality. Also, for a digital camera, it is fairly quick to respond, even in low lighting. All things considered, when you weigh up size, price and ease of use, it is unlikely that you'll find anything to beat the flexibility and quality of the Olympus C-765 Ultra Zoom.

Olympus C-765 Ultra Zoom - I got a 1Gb card and a couple of spare batteries so I can take the camera on vacations and not have to worry about looking for more cards/batteries. Seems odd to be changing batteries instead of film! The card can hold 1000 pictures or almost an hour of OK quality video, or a mix of the two. On the lower settings I could take 10,000 pictures or 3 hours of video. Even on the lower quality setting, the pictures are still good enough to send nice pictures over the internet.

The lens seems loose in the barrel, but doesn't affect picture quality. Even with the max optical/digital zoom, the camera takes sharp pics on a sunny day. A fast shutter speed will take the pic before any camera shake is noticeable.

In low light, I found I was getting more "camera shake" in the pictures. I like the option of being able to use the flash or not though. Some lighting just looks better as all natural. A small tripod could have helped...

The batteries last amazingly well. (easily take 100 pictures) If you delete/review the pictures on the camera, they will die down faster.

There is just so much packed into this little unit. Be sure and get a demo of how the camera works, and all it can do. You will be impressed!

I've had the UZ C-765 for about a month now and have shot about 200 pics. Hopefully this is long enough to give a reasonable first impression of the cameras performance (after the initial out-the-box "wow" factor has worn off!). This is my second digital, the first being an ageing Fuji Finepix 1.3 MP. After happily using this camera for about three years, I wanted something with an optical zoom and a bit more flexibility. I'd been looking at a C750 for the past six months, but when the new, smaller C765 was released in May, I decided to plump for that instead.

Size-wise, the UZ isn't bad at all. The lens is the only thing which makes it bulky, but it's OK for a 10x zoom. Build quality is fine and the camera has a solid feel to it. The Olympus menu system takes some getting use to, especially if you're used to a Fuji. At first it all seems a bit counter intuitive, but with practice it becomes second nature. Part of the problem is this camera has a bewildering array of features - it takes some serious reading time with the manual to get the most out of this camera. You can adjust various menu shortcuts and set-up four "my-modes" for commonly used functions. Unfortunately, the main manual is only supplied as a PDF on CD, but if this is to keep costs down, I can forgive this.

One thing which didn't appeal to me about the 765 was the L-ion battery pack, replacing the AA's used to power the old 750. If you're low on juice, you can always buy AA's wherever you are in the world - not so easy with a custom battery pack. A genuine Olympus battery lists at £30. However, Battery Universe on the net will sell you two third party packs for around £27. Budget for at least one extra battery - depending on zoom use & no. Of cold power-ups, 60 to 100 shots per battery seems to be realistic. I was surprised that the battery is only a measly 1090mAH, although as an advantage it only takes 2 hrs to charge.

Another item you'll definitely need is a memory card - the 16MB supplied is limiting to say the least. I'd prefer it if manufacturers stopped including these useless small memory cards and provided something more useful instead, like a camera case perhaps? Digital Depot will sell you a 128MB card for about £30. Make sure it's an Olympus card otherwise the panorama function will not work. One minor grumble is that there are just too many image formats to choose from, with no clear explanation for beginners on the pros and cons. I've settled on HQ 2288 x 1712, which can store 130 pics on 128MB. The jpeg compression is heavier than on my old Fuji, but it's hard to tell from the end results. Instead of lots of picture modes, I'd prefer to select an image size, then a jpeg compression level for that resolution (like "low", "normal", "high"). The TIFF format is quite impressive though (as are the file sizes!!!).

On to the lens - the optical zoom is something else! Forget any negative reviews about the UZ not having an image stabiliser. In reasonable daylight conditions sharp shots are possible, even without a tripod. Admittedly, you will need a tripod in low light. The autofocus can get confused sometimes with low light / high zoom shots, but there is a manual focus option. Surprisingly, the EVF is fairly good - even on bright days you can still see images clearly. Handy because, let's be honest, LCD screens on all cameras are no use whatsoever on a sunny day.

I can't do justice to all the features on this camera here, but it allows full control to tinker with shutter speed and aperature if required. Shutter lag isn't bad, but the AF can take some time to get a lock, depending on the subject. The two Macro modes are excellent, with a minimum distance of about 3cm. I was also impressed by the panorama feature, which I initially thought would be a gimmick. One feature I particularly like is the histogram display - really useful for composing shots. The download software is simple and straightforward. I was up and running without reading any instructions and with the minimum of fuss.

Colour wise, pictures so far have been impressive. My only criticism is that on really sunny, cloudless days (not too many yet!), zoom shots can be a little over-exposed. Thankfully, there are plenty of white balance, AEL, metering etc. Adjustments which can be made to compensate for this. Another nice feature is the AV out, allowing pictures to be reviewed on TV. This could be really handy on holiday, to see what to keep and what to cut after each day -it's not always easy to tell on the small LCD.

All in all, a great camera, at a bargain price of less than £250 on the net. Highly recommended, if like me you've had a basic digital for a while and want to move on. Beginners may struggle at first, but the "Auto" setting is fairly idiot proof & provides good results. Don't expect to master this camera on the first night you get it!